WVC 17 G- 1 - 2
§17G-1-2. Information obtained by law-enforcement officers during
a traffic stop.
Each time a law-enforcement officer stops a driver of a motor
vehicle for a violation of any motor vehicle statute or ordinance,
other than for a nonviolation stop, including, but not limited to,
a checkpoint for driving under the influence, license, registration
or seat belts, the officer shall obtain and prepare a brief report
based on the officer's visual observation and perception of basic
information about the nature, duration and outcome of the stop,
including, but not limited to, information relating to the
perceived racial characteristics of each operator stopped. The
report is to be provided to the West Virginia law-enforcement
agency which employs the law-enforcement officer: Provided, That
the failure of the law-enforcement officer to obtain and report
racial profiling data shall not affect the validity of the
underlying traffic citation or warning.

The information to be collected shall include:

(a) The identifying characteristics of the operator stopped,
including perceived race, ethnicity or national origin, gender and
age;

(b) The location and duration of the stop;

(c) The traffic violation or violations alleged to have been
committed that led to the stop;

(d) Whether or not a warning or citation was issued as a
result of the stop and if so, the specific violation, if any, charged or warning given;

(e) Whether a search was performed as a result of the stop;

(f) If a search was performed, whether the person consented to
the search, the probable cause or reasonable suspicion for the
search, whether the person was searched, whether the person's
property was searched and the duration of the search;

(g) If a search was of a passenger in the motor vehicle, the
perceived age, gender and race or minority group of the passenger;

(h) Whether any contraband was discovered or seized in the
course of the search and the type of any contraband discovered or
seized;

(j) Any additional information which the law-enforcement
agency considers appropriate.

WVC 17 G- 1 - 3
§17G-1-3. Law-enforcement officer exemption from civil liability.
Any law-enforcement officer who, in good faith, records
traffic stop information under the requirements of section two of
this article may not be held civilly liable for the act of
inaccurately recording the information unless the officer's conduct
was unconstitutional, unreasonable, intentional or reckless.

WVC 17 G- 1 - 1
§17G-1-1. Definitions.
The following words and phrases, when used in this chapter,
shall, for the purposes of this chapter, have the meanings
respectively ascribed to them in this article:

(a) "Gross data" means aggregate data regarding the
information obtained under section two of this article.

(b) "Law-enforcement agency" means every state, county or
municipal agency with officers who are authorized to direct or
regulate traffic or to make arrests or issue citations or warnings
for violations of traffic laws and ordinances.

WVC 17 G- 2 - 1
§17G-2-1. Format of traffic stops data collection forms.
The division of motor vehicles shall provide a form as
required by section three of this article, in both printed and
electronic format, to be used by law-enforcement officers when
making a traffic stop to record the information listed in section
two, article one of this chapter.

WVC 17 G- 2 - 2
§17G-2-2. Law-enforcement agency traffic stops data collection and
submission.
(a) Each law-enforcement agency shall report its data
described in section two, article one of this chapter to the
division of motor vehicles in a report format as prescribed by the
division.

(b) If a law-enforcement agency fails to comply with the
provisions of this section, the division of motor vehicles shall
notify the agency by certified mail of its failure to comply. If
the agency continues to fail to comply, the governor may withhold
state-controlled funds appropriated to the noncompliant
law-enforcement agency until reports are made as required by this
article.

WVC 17 G- 2 - 3
§17G-2-3. Analysis of traffic stop statistics, annual report and
legislative rules.
(a) To facilitate the commencement of data collection, the
Director of the Governor's Committee on Crime, Delinquency and
Corrections, in consultation with the Division of Motor Vehicles,
shall propose legislative rules in accordance with article three,
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. These rules shall include, but
are not limited to:

(1) The manner of reporting the information to the Division of
Motor Vehicles;

(2) Promulgation of a form or forms for reporting purposes by
various law-enforcement agencies;

(3) A means of reporting the information required in section
two, article one of this chapter on warning citations to the
Division of Motor Vehicles;

(4) In consultation with the Fraternal Order of Police, the
Sheriff's Association, the Deputy Sheriff's Association and
representatives of law-enforcement agencies, a means of providing
training to law-enforcement officers on completion and submission
of the data on the proposed form;

(5) A means of reporting back to individual law-enforcement
agencies, from time to time, at the request of a law-enforcement
agency on findings specific to that agency in an agreed-upon format
to allow the agency to evaluate independently the data provided;

(6) A limitation that the data is to be used solely for the purposes of this chapter;

(7) Safeguards to protect the identity of individual
law-enforcement officers collecting data required by section two,
article one of this chapter when no citation or warning is issued;

(8) Methodology for collection of gross data by
law-enforcement agencies and the analysis of the data;

(9) The number of motor vehicle stops and searches of motor
vehicles occupied by members of a perceived minority group; the
number of motor vehicle stops and searches of motor vehicles
occupied by persons who are not members of a minority group; the
population of minorities in the areas where the stops occurred;
estimates of the number of all vehicles traveling on the public
highways where the stops occurred; factors to be included in any
evaluation that the data may indicate racial profiling, racial
stereotyping or other race-based discrimination or selective
enforcement; and other data deemed appropriate by the Governor's
Committee on Crime, Delinquency and Correction for the analysis of
the protection of constitutional rights; and

(10) Protocols for reporting collected data by the Division of
Motor Vehicles to the Governor's Committee on Crime, Delinquency
and Correction and the analysis thereof.

(b) Annually, on or before the first day of February, the
Director of the Governor's Committee on Crime, Delinquency and
Correction shall publish a public report of the data collected and
provide a copy thereof to all law-enforcement agencies subject to this chapter and provide a copy of the report and analysis of the
data collected to the Governor and to the Joint Committee on
Government and Finance.

(c) The provisions of sections two and three, article one of
this chapter and section two of this article were effective the
thirty-first day of December, two thousand four.

(d) Collection of data pursuant to subsection (a) of this
section shall terminate on the thirty-first day of December, two
thousand eight. The provisions of this chapter shall be of no
force or effect after the thirtieth day of June, two thousand nine.

Note: WV Code updated with legislation passed through the 2014 1st Special Session
The WV Code Online is an unofficial copy of the annotated WV Code, provided as a convenience. It has NOT been edited for publication, and is not in any way official or authoritative.